


Eia Au, Eia ‘Oe [Here I Am, Here You Are]

by Orithain, Rina9294



Category: Hawaii Five-0 (2010)
Genre: Episode Related, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-02
Updated: 2016-10-02
Packaged: 2018-08-19 01:36:32
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,742
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8184065
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Orithain/pseuds/Orithain, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rina9294/pseuds/Rina9294
Summary: After his little brother is long-gone and out of Danny's sphere of influence, Danny is faced with the ugly fact that Matt is a criminal who fled justice on his watch. Not knowing what to do with all the emotions this is causing, Danny goes to the one place he knows he can be without question. Trouble is, Catherine is there when he arrives.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Set right after “Loa Aloha”.  
> Originally published in Dyad #26, summer 2013, and then forgotten so never posted till now.

As he turned and walked back toward his car, Danny heard the door close behind him, sealing Rachel back into the house she shared with Stan. He could still smell the vanilla scent of her shampoo, still feel the imprint of her body against his, but it all seemed different, foreign, part of his old life, the life that also included a brother who wasn’t a liar.

His mind on the past, Danny pulled out of the long driveway and onto the quiet street, joining the increasing traffic as he turned onto more travelled arteries and cruised through downtown Honolulu, the bright lights and enthusiastic crowds at odds with his state of mind.

The traffic thinned again as he left the city, finally pulling up in front of Steve’s beachfront home, not sure why he was here, only knowing that he couldn’t face his pathetic apartment, couldn’t face being alone that evening.

As he climbed out of the Camaro, Danny raked a hand through his hair and looked up at the sky, wondering where Matt was at that moment and where he was going to end up. His expression twisted at the thought, and he scrubbed at his jaw, his stubble rasping loudly in his ears, trying to clear the tightness from his features and the dourness from his thoughts.

Crossing to the front door, Danny knocked, the sound less sharp than the noise his knuckles had made on the window in the door at Rachel’s house. Stepping back, he rubbed his face again as he waited for Steve to answer.

The sound of a knock on the door caused Steve to draw back from Cat and glance toward it.

“Ignore it,” she urged, trying to draw him back down to resume their interrupted kiss, but Steve sat up.

“No, I need to get it. It’s probably Danny.”

She stared at him. “Steve, we’re busy.”

But Steve didn’t hesitate as he made his way to the door, opening it to find, as he expected, Danny standing there, looking broken.

“C’mon,” he said, stepping back to let his partner in. “Let’s grab some beer and talk. Or not. Whichever you prefer.”

“Thanks.” Danny paused as he took in the bare expanse of Steve’s chest framed by the unbuttoned white shirt, only belatedly realizing that Cat was standing behind him looking decidedly annoyed.

“Oh shit, sorry, I didn’t think...”

“Get in here,” Steve ordered. “After today, the least I can do is be here for you.”

“You did that already,” Danny protested, balking on the front stoop. “I didn’t think; I should have called.”

Steve reached out and caught hold of Danny’s arm to draw him inside. “Don’t be an idiot.”

Cat shouldered past them, her bag now slung over her shoulder. “Call me when you’re free, Steve,” she said, a definite snap in her voice.

“I’m not being an idiot,” Danny protested, half-turning to watch Cat head for her car which had been hidden behind Steve’s truck. “You had plans.”

“Which can easily be postponed.” Steve shrugged, pushing the door closed behind Danny without another look toward Cat.

“Steve...” Danny began before realizing that this line of conversation was pointless and following the other man into the living room, dropping onto the sofa once he arrived.

“Beer?” Steve asked, waiting for Danny’s nod before getting two bottles out of the fridge and coming back to sit next to Danny after handing one to him. “So, asking you how you’re doing is pretty pointless, I guess.”

Most of the beer found its way down Danny’s throat before he answered. “He left. Took off on a charter right in front of me.”

Steve winced. “Sorry,” he offered, knowing it wouldn’t help.

“Not your fault.” Danny downed the rest of the beer before looking mournfully at the bottle. “You didn’t make him do it.”

“Neither did you,” Steve said as he went to get more beer, bringing three bottles back this time.

Most of the next bottle vanished before Danny answered. “I told him that he was being investigated. I told him I’d be there with him; why didn’t he believe me?”

“Maybe he did, but he still couldn’t face it,” Steve suggested. “Some people can’t.”

“What? That I’d stand there with him?” Danny’s voice broke as he asked the question.

“The consequences of his actions.” Steve reached over to rest a comforting hand on Danny’s shoulder.

Danny let his head thump back against the sofa and roll to the side so his face brushed against Steve’s hand. “Yeah, well, he should have; this is going to kill our folks.”

“They’ll get through this; you all will. I’m just sorry you’re going to have to. But you know that anything I can do, I’m here for you, partner.”

Danny downed the rest of his second beer, somehow without losing contact with Steve’s hand. “I know, and thanks for what you did earlier; it gave me a chance even though it didn’t pan out.”

“I wish it had worked out better.” Steve squeezed Danny’s shoulder, turning to face him more fully.

“Yeah, me too,” Danny sighed as he sat up and reached for a fresh beer. “Maybe he’ll wise up and come back.”

“Maybe,” Steve said, but it was clearly more to comfort Danny than out of any belief in the possibility. “What are you going to tell your family?”

“The truth,” Danny answered after a long moment of contemplation. “I have to; I mean, what else am I going to say, that he met a hula girl and ran away with her?”

Steve snickered. “It’s not beyond the realm of possibility. But no, the truth is always best.” He finally drank some of his beer. “No matter how much it hurts.”

Realizing that Steve could be talking about Mary, Danny winced slightly even as he nodded. “Yeah,” he murmured as he shifted his bottle to his free hand so that he could grip Steve’s forearm. “Lying just makes it worse.”

“But it’s just so damn tempting sometimes, isn’t it?” Steve sighed.

“God yes; it makes it easier, but then it comes back to bite you in the ass.”

“Doesn’t everything?” Steve sank lower on the sofa, letting his head fall back, and his hand slid down from Danny’s shoulder to his leg.

“Not everything,” Danny answered after a long moment, twisting to lean his head against Steve’s shoulder and giving a heartfelt sigh.

“Name me one thing that hasn’t lately,” Steve muttered, unconsciously drawing patterns on Danny’s leg with a fingertip.

“You, me, Chin, Kono.”

“Okay, yeah, the team’s good,” Steve admitted. “But the rest of the world sucks.”

“We saved people today,” Danny countered, squirming slightly to get comfortable.

“People needed saving,” Steve retorted before finishing one beer and picking up another, Danny neatly plucking it out of his hand as he finished his.

“If we didn’t do it, who would?”

Steve snatched the beer back to take a long swallow. “I know,” he said. “I just wish...” He trailed off, shaking his head.

“You wish what?”

“I wish people were better, that the world was a nicer place, that people lived up to our expectations of them.”

Danny reached over and gripped Steve’s leg just over the knee though he didn’t move otherwise. “Ditto, but if we didn’t do what we did, who would stop the people who needed to be stopped?”

“Maybe we should get masks and capes.”

“Sure, I’d pay to see you all in spandex.”

Steve turned his head to stare at Danny, blinking in surprise. He probably shouldn’t have chugged a beer and a half after the drinks he’d had with Cat and no food yet that night. “I think that came out wrong, Danny.”

“What? You wouldn’t want to try out a mask and a cape?” Danny asked as he downed the rest of his beer, setting the third bottle on the floor by the sofa.

“Sure, not so sure about spandex though. And why would you want to see me in it? Kono, sure, but me?”

Danny rolled his head to the side, his eyebrows rising as he looked at Steve. “What, I thought you were Super-SEAL; are you saying you’re too macho to wear spandex?”

Steve’s expression said he was wondering when he’d completely lost control of the conversation, but he tried to get it back on track. “Why are we talking about spandex?” he asked almost plaintively.

“Because I don’t want to talk about Matty, and you don’t want to talk about Mary,” Danny said decisively.

“Oh.” Steve thought about that for a moment. “What color spandex?”

“For who?”

“Me. And you.”

Danny’s eyebrows rose again before he shrugged. “You can have the camo; I’ll take blue,” he finally decided.

“What, to match your eyes? Not very original.”

“It’s a classic,” Danny protested.

“You gonna wear your underwear on the outside too?”

Danny snickered at the comment. “It makes it easier to hold the belt up.”

“You do realize that you’re not Superman, right?”

“I’m amazed that you aren’t complaining about my choice for you.”

“I’m trying very hard not to think about camo latex. Although it could be worse,” Steve mused. “It could be spray-on latex.”

Danny shifted again but didn’t straighten up. “I didn’t say latex; I said spandex, what kind of superhero are you, S&M?”

“I said spandex,” Steve insisted, even though he wasn’t entirely sure that he had. It was what he had meant to say, at any rate, and Danny should have known that.

“Yeah, sure,” Danny snorted. “So you’re saying that you’d wear camo spandex?”

“Like I said, trying not to think about it!” Steve actually shuddered. “I’ll stick to Kevlar, thanks.”

“Shame,” Danny murmured to himself before he stole Steve’s bottle back again and drained it.

“Hey!” Steve protested, staring forlornly at the empty bottle. “It’s your turn to go get more,” he informed Danny.

“Sure, I can do that.” Danny reached out and patted Steve on the chest as he stood, the feeling of warm, muscled flesh under his palm registering only after he had gotten to his feet and taken a few steps. He was glad his back was to Steve as the muscles in his own gut clenched, and he forced himself to continue walking toward the kitchen, intent on bringing back every beer Steve had in his fridge.

“Bring lots,” Steve called, his eyes on Danny till the blond disappeared from sight. “I don’t want to get up again.”

“Yes, dear,” Danny called back before he could stop himself, and he shook his head as he gathered six bottles of beer, cleaning out Steve’s supply but not feeling guilty about it.

“You’re buying next time,” Steve informed him when Danny returned with the bottles. He leaned forward, snagging one as soon as Danny put them down, and took a long swallow.

“Sure, no problem.” Danny dropped down onto the sofa again, opening another beer as he did so. “If you want to drink them at my place, we’re gonna need a cooler though; my fridge isn’t big enough to hold everything we drink and warm beer – ugh.”

“You really need to get a better place. Living here isn’t temporary, Danny.”

“You planning on giving me a raise?”

“You can afford better than that dump.”

“The cost of living here is through the roof, plus I have child support; unless I win the lottery, I really can’t.”

Steve shook his head, waving a hand in the air. “My dad afforded this on a cop’s salary,” he pointed out.

“He wasn’t paying child support, and he bought this place, what? Forty years ago?” Danny asked before swallowing more of his beer.

“No, he was supporting two kids,” Steve pointed out. “But whatever. You spend half your time here anyway, so it doesn’t really matter.”

“So what doesn’t really matter?” Danny asked in confusion, rolling his head to the left against the back of the couch to look at Steve.

“The fact that your apartment sucks. You barely use it except to sleep.”

“Exactly.” Danny looked forward again and drained his bottle.

Steve shook his head. “Not exactly a great place to bring someone home to though, is it?”

“Grace likes it,” Danny protested as he reached for another beer. “She calls it the micro-house.”

“So in other words, you live in a dollhouse.”

“Why do you care where I live? It’s not like you all come over and hang out there,” Danny protested.

“Everyone deserves a nice place to live,” Steve replied with a shrug.

“You lived in the desert for how many years?”

“More often jungles and urban war zones than deserts,” Steve replied, avoiding the question.

Danny opened his mouth then closed it and nodded.

“Wanna see if there’s a game on?” Steve offered.

“Sure, works for me.” Danny caught the coffee table with his foot and pulled it closer so that he could stretch his legs out and rest his feet on it.

“Do you even own a TV of your own?” Steve asked wryly. He looked around for the remote, eventually finding it half behind a sofa cushion, and tossed it to Danny once he’d retrieved it. “Put on whatever you like. I’m easy.”

After flipping Steve the bird in response to the question, Danny turned the TV on and began randomly flipping through the channels, finally settling on a college basketball game. Dropping the remote to the cushions between them, he looked at the beer in his hand then over at Steve. “Got anything to eat?”

Steve regarded him for long seconds before shaking his head with a faint chuckle. “Pizza work? I need to get groceries.”

“So long as there’s no pineapple on it,” Danny warned with a slight smile.

“I wouldn’t dream of sullying your taste buds. We can get half Hawaiian and half plain pepperoni just for you.”

“I like pineapple, just not on my pizza,” Danny protested laughingly, aiming a punch at Steve’s arm though it missed and skittered over his bare chest instead.

“You don’t know what you’re missing.” Steve caught hold of Danny’s wrist to prevent any further attacks, then let his hand fall to his leg, seemingly unaware that he still held Danny’s arm.

Danny, however, wasn’t as oblivious, and his eyebrows rose slightly as his fist uncurled, his fingers sliding along the heavy material of Steve’s cargo pants until his palm was flat against them and he could feel the heat of Steve’s skin beneath the cloth. He flexed his fingers slightly even as he shook his head. “Are you saying try it, I might like it?”

“Exactly.” Steve glanced down, finally noticing that he still held Danny captive and where his hand lay, but it didn’t seem to bother him since he did nothing about it aside from loosening his grip so that his hand rested on Danny’s wrist rather than holding it.

Fine lines around Danny’s eyes deepened as he smiled widely, and he flexed his fingers again, the move more of a caress this time. “I can go with that.”

Steve glanced down again, looking somewhat startled for a brief moment. “So does that mean you’re willing to try Hawaiian style?”

Danny considered the words for a moment as he licked his lower lip. “Yeah, I could give it a try; I’m interested in the differences between that and Jersey style.” He slid his hand a little higher up Steve’s leg and, when the other man opened his mouth to speak, dove in, kissing him hungrily.

Steve’s eyes widened, and he froze, shocked speechless – were speech even possible at the moment. But even as stunned as he was, he realized after a moment that he liked the taste and feel of Danny, and he began to respond to the kiss.

Sliding his free hand around the back of Steve’s neck, Danny hummed in pleasure as he felt Steve’s tongue slide against his, the beer they had both drunk flavoring the kiss as their mouths moved together.

The feel of calluses on his skin startled Steve again, but he and Danny often touched, so it wasn’t that unusual. And the kiss, that definitely was unusual, better than any of Cat’s kisses, and he wanted more. One of his hands curled around the back of Danny’s neck in turn, holding him close as Steve sought to deepen the kiss.

“Oh yeah, I’m likin’ Hawaiian style,” Danny murmured against Steve’s mouth before opening for him, inviting him in as his hand slid up Steve’s thigh to knead his crotch.

Steve made a garbled sound and jerked back, knocking Danny’s hand aside. His chest rose and fell rapidly as he tried to catch his breath, staring at Danny, his eyes widening in shock. “What the hell?”

“What do you mean, what the hell?” Danny asked. “Is this some weird Hawaiian thing?”

“Look, I don’t know where this,” Steve gestured helplessly, “came from, and yeah, it was... good, but I’m straight!”

“Where it came from?” Danny stared at Steve’s hand, blinking as he tried to focus on it. “A blind guy could have read the signals you were sending!”

Steve stared. “What signals? I was talking about pizza!”

“Well, how did I know that!” Danny demanded. “And for a straight guy you were sure as hell kissing me back.”

“Maybe because I said pizza,” Steve shot back before rubbing the back of his neck. “Yeah, I haven’t quite figured that part out yet,” he admitted.

Danny sighed and flopped back against the sofa, closing his eyes as he rubbed his forehead. “At least you didn’t hit me; that would have been the topper on a pretty damn shitty day.”

“Of course not.” Steve eyed him. “And I did like it,” he said quietly. “But I’ve never even considered something like that. The female of the species always did it for me.”

“I figured out that I liked both when I was in college,” Danny admitted without opening his eyes.

“Oh.” There was a long silence. “Well, I’m a lot older, and I don’t think it’s guys in general.”

One blue eye opened so that Danny could regard him. “In general?”

“I don’t look at a guy on the street and think he’s hot.”

“I generally don’t either,” Danny shrugged, leaning forward and snatching up a bottle of beer, opening it and swallowing several mouthfuls down.

“Now I really don’t understand.”

“I haven’t been with a guy since I met Rachel,” Danny explained before chugging the rest of his beer as if to give himself strength, “and before that there were only two.” He held up his free hand with two fingers raised to punctuate the statement. “I’m not into all guys, just particular ones.”

There was another silence as Steve considered that.

“So, uh, me.” He tossed back half of the beer he was holding. “So maybe I am too. Into particular guys.”

One corner of Danny’s mouth quirked up in a grin, and he tilted his bottle toward Steve. “So should we toast to particular guys?”

“That doesn’t mean I have any idea what to do about it,” Steve sighed, but he tapped his beer against Danny’s.

“Don’t worry, I’m not going to molest you,” Danny chuckled.

“I think I can defend myself,” Steve replied dryly. “The question is, how long am I going to want to?”

“Do you want me to show you or tell you?”

Steve laughed softly, still regarding Danny pensively. After a moment’s consideration, he leaned forward, bracing a hand on Danny’s far shoulder, and kissed him.

Danny smiled against his lips before sliding his hand up Steve’s arm as his mouth opened so that their tongues could slide together again, tasting of heat and darkness. Steve’s soft moan was muffled by Danny’s mouth, but the vibrations shuddered through them both as he turned a little more, though still keeping distance between their bodies.

In response to the quiet sound, Danny shifted his hand to the back of Steve’s neck, the short strands of his hair brushing the thumb that he brushed over them. He brushed his tongue forward, sliding it against Steve’s and sliding it into his mouth.

Steve slowly relaxed as Danny didn’t push him for more than he was able to offer, and one hand tugged Danny’s shirt loose so it could slip under it to stroke Danny’s skin.

“Christ,” Danny groaned into Steve’s mouth before nibbling at his lower lip and pressing his free hand against Steve’s chest, his fingers flexing against the firm flesh though he was careful not to do anything else, not wanting to spook the other man again.

“Just Steve,” he chuckled, leaning into Danny a little more, both hands now under his shirt.

“Was that supposed to be humor?” Danny’s next nip was slightly harder.

“I thought it was pretty funny.” Steve’s eyes darkened, and he retaliated with a nip of his own, followed by a quick swipe of his tongue.

“Which should tell you that it isn’t.” Danny chuckled and pulled back to look closely at Steve, what he saw apparently meeting with his approval because he dove back in, eating at Steve’s mouth with a barely restrained hunger while he slid his hand over Steve’s chest, his fingers tracing the lines of his ribs beneath his skin.

Steve’s protest was smothered by Danny’s mouth, and after only a few seconds he not only didn’t care, he couldn’t remember what he’d been planning to say or why. He arched his back, increasing the pressure of Danny’s hand against him, and his own fingers curved, scratching lightly over Danny’s back as the other man twisted, pressing Steve back against the sofa and moving closer, his legs straddling Steve’s and his body pressing his hand between them.

Steve’s eyes shot open, and he pulled back from the kiss with a startled gasp. “Whoa!”

Danny’s eyebrows shot up, and he groaned, the sound vibrating through both of their bodies before he slowly slid off Steve’s lap and onto the couch again.

Steve sat back, panting, and stared at Danny, obviously aroused but equally obviously freaked out.

“Shit,” Danny breathed out the word, and he collapsed back against the cushions, his eyes half-closed and his breath coming in short pants.

After several seconds spent staring at each other, Steve suggested, “Maybe we should call it a night and get some sleep?”

“Yeah, yeah, that would be good,” Danny nodded, scrubbing his hands over his face.

“We can... talk,” Steve made a face, “about what we’re doing tomorrow if we need to.”

“If you mean about Matty, I really don’t feel like it right now.”

“No, I meant talk tomorrow. About, er, us.”

“Oh. Yeah, right, we can do that if you want.”

Steve stared. “I’m a guy, Danny. Talking isn’t my preference, but...” He shrugged. “I think maybe we need to.”

“Sure, Steve, we can talk,” Danny sighed. “In the morning.”

“Great.” Steve sighed and pushed to his feet. “You can sleep in Mary’s old room. I’ll get you some sheets.”

“Don’t worry about it; I can crash here on the couch.”

“Up to you, but there are two other bedrooms in the house.”

Danny sighed and shook his head. “Fine then, another bedroom works, but the couch would have been just as good.”

“Danny, just shut up and come upstairs.”

“So goddamn bossy,” Danny muttered as he stood, swaying slightly as the amount of beer he had downed made itself known in his system.

“That’s because I am the boss.”

“In your mind maybe.”

“Just ask the governor.” Steve gave him a smirk over his shoulder as he started upstairs.

Danny snorted as he slung his arm around Steve’s waist, sliding his hand over his taut ass. “That’s okay, I don’t want to think about what you and her get up to.”

Steve stopped in his tracks, ignoring the hand on his ass in favor of glaring over his shoulder at Danny. “That’s just disgusting!”

“You’re the one who brought it up!”

“I didn’t mean that!”

Danny just smirked and patted Steve’s ass again.

“You can be such an ass,” Steve grumbled, but he made sure to move slowly enough for Danny to stay close as they climbed the stairs.

“Yeah, but I’m a good kisser, and I’m hell on wheels in bed, which you’ll eventually find out.”

Steve gulped. “Right, sheets then.”

“Grab them for me, and I’ll make the bed; I don’t want to worry you by getting you near one right now.”

“I think I can defend myself.”

“Yeah, well, I’m going to have a headache come morning; I don’t need a broken wrist as well, so give me the damn sheets.”

Steve rolled his eyes. “Yes, Danny.” Shaking his head, he went to the linen closet, Danny still plastered against his back, and got out a set of sheets.

“You realize you’re going to have to let go of me to take these, right?”

Danny huffed out a sigh and straightened up, his hands trailing over Steve’s body as he did so. “Gimme,” he grumbled, holding out a hand.

Steve handed over the sheets and then caught hold of Danny’s arm before he could turn away. After a moment where Danny just looked at him questioningly, he leaned in and kissed Danny.

“That for good night?” Danny murmured, his lips brushing against Steve’s.

“Uh huh.” Steve stepped back. “G’night, Danno.”

“Night, Steven.” Danny pulled the sheets to his chest and turned, heading for the spare bedroom.

***

It had taken a long time for Steve to fall asleep that night, his mind and body in turmoil, but eventually he did doze off, only to wake a few short hours later when the sun shone in his window, falling across his face in a warm stripe.

To his utter lack of surprise, Danny wasn’t stirring yet when he made his way downstairs, and Steve put the coffee on to brew before heading outside for a morning swim.

Danny woke and stumbled out of bed, already in the bathroom before he realized that he wasn’t at his apartment and yesterday’s events came crashing in on him. “Jesus, Matty,” he groaned before splashing water over his face before looking at himself in the mirror. “And fuck me for being an idiot, a double idiot.”

He dried his face and headed downstairs, gratefully pouring himself a mug of coffee then sitting down at the table to wait for Steve to return.

“Good morning,” Steve greeted as he padded in, rubbing at his wet hair with the towel draped around his neck. “How’s the head?”

“Better after the coffee,” Danny admitted. “How’re you doing?”

Steve glanced at him uneasily before moving away to pour himself a cup of coffee. With his back to Danny, he said, “Fine.”

Danny sighed as he lifted his mug again and drank. “Yeah, I can see that.”

Steve’s shoulders rose a fraction higher as he stiffened almost imperceptibly. “You do remember last night, right?”

“Yup, all of it; looks like you’re wanting to forget it though. S’okay, I can live with that.”

Steve half-turned, glaring at Danny over his shoulder. “Did I say that?”

“You look like you do.”

“Which just proves what I keep telling you; you’re not as observant as you think you are. What I want,” Steve growled, turning all the way and stalking toward Danny, “is to kiss you again.”

“Yeah, because people looking pissed is a definite signal of them wanting to kiss someone,” Danny snorted, wincing as the action made his head throb.

“Yeah well, it’s kind of a surprise to me,” Steve snapped. “I never expected this.”

“What, for me to come on to you or for you to have liked it?”

“Both!”

“So what do you want me to do about it? I didn’t come here planning on trying to jump you,” Danny growled, his eyes narrowing.

“I know,” Steve sighed, the fight suddenly going out of him. He eyed Danny for a moment, muttered, “What the hell,” and kissed him, Danny relaxing at the touch of his lips, the mug clattering against the countertop as he stood and reached to pull Steve closer, his fingertips warm against Steve’s damp skin.

Steve shivered and pressed into Danny, the feel of the hard planes of another man’s body still odd to him but growing more familiar with each repetition. And the taut globes of the ass under his palms were familiar enough, even if the growing hardness pressing into his thigh was far less so.

“So?” Danny breathed against his lips, his thumbs inscribing small circles against Steve’s shoulders. “What do you think?”

“I think I have no idea how this happened or what we’re doing, but I want to see where it goes.”

“If it helps, I have a pretty good idea of both, but I’ll try to keep things at your speed until you’ve caught up,” Danny assured him, his hands sliding down Steve’s back to rest at the waist of his trunks, the damp fabric cool against his skin.

“I have no idea if that makes it better or worse, but I’m not sure that I care,” Steve admitted. “I’ll try to keep the backtracking to a minimum.”

“I’ll try to remember it when it happens,” Danny said wryly, tracing a fingertip under the edge of Steve’s bathing suit.

“Sorry?” Steve offered with the slightest of shrugs, tensing briefly before relaxing again, tacitly giving Danny permission to continue.

“I’ll remember that as well.” As he spoke, Danny slid a finger inside the waistband, the elastic pressing his digit against Steve’s waist.

“Good. You’re probably going to need to,” Steve admitted with a self-deprecating shrug.

Danny snorted at that and dipped his finger lower, the tip brushing the curve of Steve’s ass. “Steve, I deal with you on a daily basis; I’m used to knowing that you need to apologize to me.”

“Jackass.” Steve’s fingers flexed against Danny’s ass, but he didn’t pull away or tell Danny to stop.

“Takes one to know one.”

“I never claimed otherwise.” Steve was smiling when he claimed another kiss.

“Thank god for that,” Danny chuckled, sliding his hand down inside Steve’s trunks as he opened his mouth beneath Steve’s, inviting his tongue inside. It was an invitation Steve was happy to accept, a soft sound escaping him as he drew Danny closer. He widened his stance, hesitating briefly as he felt Danny’s cock but then settling them together as the kiss deepened.

“Oh yeah, I’m liking the way you apologize,” Danny breathed as he rocked against the length of Steve’s body as much as their positions allowed.

Steve chuckled. “Haven’t done anything to apologize for yet.” He could feel Danny harden against him, and it was possibly the weirdest thing he’d ever felt, but it was arousing too.

“Not regarding this, but in general, hell yeah, you have.”

“Shut up, Danny.”

Danny quirked a grin at that and squeezed the firm globe beneath his hand. “Make me.”

One eyebrow rose, and then Steve’s mouth covered Danny’s, and his hips rocked slightly against Danny, the other man rocking against him, his free hand closing over the back of Steve’s neck and holding him into the kiss. Steve pressed Danny against the counter, increasing the pressure.

“You keep it up, those trunks are going to be on the floor in a minute, and I’m going to follow them,” Danny warned.

Steve let his head fall to rest against Danny’s, and he groaned. “I think it’s time for breakfast,” he rasped, earning a rough, half-pained chuckle in response.

“Yeah, I figured that’s what you were going to say. I think right now I’ll stick to the coffee.”

“Breakfast is the most important meal of the day.”

“You planning on making it then?”

“That was the plan, yes. I’m not certain you can cook.”

“At all or in my current state of aching head?”

“At all, but now in particular.”

Danny shrugged and slowly drew his hand out of Steve’s trunks, patting his ass through the damp fabric after he did so. “You’re probably right, so cook away.”

“Gee, thanks. I feel so special.”

“You just said that you didn’t want me to cook...”

Steve shook his head. “I’m not going to win. Sit down and drink your coffee while I get us something to eat.”

Danny grinned slightly at that and settled himself on the chair again, reaching for his coffee though he shifted surreptitiously to adjust the fit of his pants. “So, what are you making?”

“Bacon and eggs work for you?” Steve asked, already heading for the fridge.

“Yeah, that works,” Danny said after consulting his stomach regarding the matter.

“Here.” Steve poured two glasses of fruit juice and handed one to Danny. “This’ll help your head more than the coffee will.”

Danny eyed the juice and finished his coffee before picking up the glass, eyeing Steve over the rim. “Maybe, but the coffee is going to keep me awake today, and I’m going to need it for that.”

“Which is why you have both,” Steve pointed out logically as he started cooking their meal.

“You sound like my mother.”

“Keep it up and you’ll be wearing this instead of eating it.”

“Do that and I’ll puke.”

Steve chuckled. “Poor baby.”

“And I won’t be the one cleaning it up,” Danny warned.

“I guess you’re safe for the moment then.”

“My hero.”

Steve chuckled and busied himself readying the food, sliding it onto plates a few minutes later and sitting down opposite Danny. “Dig in.”

“Thanks.” Danny eyed the food for a moment before picking up his fork and taking a bite of the eggs, looking relieved when they didn’t cause any problems after he swallowed. “I appreciate this, and last night.”

“Yeah well, whatever else we are, we’re also friends.”

Danny was quiet for a moment before chuckling. “Good thing or we would have killed each other by now.”

“And here I thought that you thought that I tried.” Steve smirked.

“You tried; you didn’t succeed.”

“Trust me, when I try to kill someone, they die.”

“Glad you didn’t mean it then.”

“Me too.”

Danny grinned before he started to eat again, slowly making his way through the rest of the food on his plate, interspersing the bites with lots of coffee.

“You going to be okay to work today?” Steve asked, regarding him over a mug of steaming coffee. “Or do you need the day?”

“I’ll be okay,” Danny sighed, reaching up to rub his temples. “Just need to get home and clean up and down a few aspirin before I go in.”

Steve eyed him, clearly hesitating over something. “We could plan to go out someplace for lunch if nothing comes up,” he suggested.

Danny paused in the midst of raising his mug to his lips and studied Steve. “Sure, we could do that; you paying?”

“That’s the plan.”

“You know, I don’t put out on the first date,” Danny chuckled.

Steve’s lips quirked in a wry smile. “I’m counting on it.”

“I figured you’d be happy to hear that, which should strip you of your Super-SEAL status.”

“Once a SEAL, always a SEAL,” Steve informed him loftily before ruining it by laughing. “And we always do recon before committing to a mission.”

“I hope you aren’t planning on doing that while you’re at work; the Governor might revoke your free pass if she catches you looking at porn sites.”

Steve snickered. “I prefer hands-on trials.”

“Just not too handy yet, right?”

“Slow and steady wins the race,” Steve intoned, causing Danny to stare at him, open-mouthed.

“You have got to be kidding me!”

Steve burst into laughter. “Oh, I should’ve gotten a picture of that.”

“Considering that I know you, I know you don’t have a slow speed.”

“Now that’s just not true,” Steve protested.

Danny arched his eyebrows again in response as he drained the last of his coffee.

“I respond appropriately to any given situation.”

“A-appropriately?” Danny leaned back in his chair and started to laugh, setting his mug down and holding his head as the peals escaped him. “Oh God, stop, you’re killing me here.”

“Oh ha ha.” Steve regarded him narrowly. “Are you sure you want to challenge me to prove how slow I can go just now?”

Danny snickered and held out his mug for a refill.

“It would serve you right if I drugged it,” Steve muttered even as he got up to get them both a final cup.

“If you did that, I’d be here all day.”

“Is that supposed to be a deterrent?”

“So you want me to stay here all day, in bed?”

“Well, it could be interesting.”

“Just what is in your coffee?”

Steve grinned, a quick, fierce flash. “I didn’t say how far it would go.”

“Work, Steven; I don’t need blue balls on top of a hangover,” Danny chuckled.

“Just remember who said no this time,” Steve teased as he gathered the plates, cleaning up the kitchen.

“I was saving you the trouble later!”

“Yes, Danny. Whatever you say, Danny.”

***

“Danny?” Steve knocked on the door and when there was no answer, let himself in with the key Danny had given him. His eyebrows rose very slightly when he found Danny sitting on the worn sofa in the living room.

“Did you really think I wouldn’t come over to see how you’re doing? A text simply saying you won’t be in really doesn’t cut it, Danny.”

“I needed a day off,” Danny said, glancing up at Steve then back toward the floor. “We don’t have any hot cases, so it shouldn’t have been a problem.”

“It’s not a problem. I was worried about you. We’re friends and whatever else we’re working on.”

“It’s just... It’s been a shitty morning, all right?” Danny asked, rubbing his forehead.

Steve moved over to crouch down in front of Danny, one hand on his knee. “What happened?”

“It’s not enough the FBI calls me three times a day, they have to hassle my family too, damnit!”

“Oh.” Steve hesitated, then offered, “I still have friends in a few places. Want me to see if anyone can make them back off?”

“No,” Danny sighed and looked up again, meeting Steve’s steady gaze. “Thanks I appreciate it, but no; we don’t need outside pressure making someone think that there’s more wrong than I did.”

“Ah, yes.” Steve sighed. “We’re both pretty fucked up, aren’t we.”

“Understatement.”

“Guess we deserve each other then.”

“Some people would call that a curse.”

“Good thing we’re not them.”

Danny gave a rueful smile and shook his head. “They’re probably saying the same thing about us.”

Steve chuckled briefly. “Yeah, probably, but they don’t know what they’re missing.”

“Which might be better for them.”

“Definitely. I’m not into sharing.”

Danny sat up and rubbed a hand over the back of his neck. “Speaking of that, have you talked to Cat?”

“Oh hell!” Steve’s eyes widened with realization. “I’m going to have to do that and sooner rather than later.”

“So you haven’t talked to her in three days?”

“I just never thought about it,” Steve protested, sounding more than a little surprised at himself.

“Guess it wasn’t important then.”

“It was never serious between us, but I do owe her the courtesy of telling her it won’t be continuing.”

“I didn’t mean your thing with her-“ Danny began.

Steve looked at him blankly. “What did you mean then?”

“That maybe you want a fall-back position,” Danny shrugged.

Steve’s jaw dropped, and he could only gawk at Danny for several seconds before snapping his mouth shut and pulling out his phone. “Hey, Cat, how’s it going?” He chuckled at something she said. “No, I don’t need anything,” he protested. “I was just calling to let you know, well, I’m sort of seeing someone. It kind of snuck up on me –What do you mean, is it Danny?”

Danny straightened even further on the battered couch, his eyes widening just as Steve’s had when he asked the question. “What the hell?” he mouthed, his hands flying out to punctuate the question.

Steve shrugged at him, still looking stunned as he listened to Catherine. “Uh, yeah, but how did you know? ... We do not!” He frowned over at Danny. “She says we sound like an old married couple.”

“Wonderful, another in that camp,” Danny muttered.

“I’ve gotta go, Cat.” Steve disconnected before she could say anything else. “Apparently every damn person has just been waiting for us to realize,” he growled.

“Well, I knew I was attracted to you...”

“Well, I didn’t!”

Danny gave a ghost of a smile. “Poor baby.”

Steve glared. “Know-it-all.”

“If that was the case, I would have been able to stop Matty,” Danny sighed.

Instantly sobering, Steve pulled Danny into a hug. “That was not your fault, Danny. Your brother is a grown man and made his own choices, no matter how poor.”

“Yeah, well my not seeing it has brought down a lot of shit on my family,” Danny sighed, wrapping his arms around Steve’s body and leaning into him.

“Matt did that all by himself,” Steve corrected. “I know you care about him, but you’re not responsible for him or his actions.” His arms tightened protectively around Danny.

“I’m responsible for not stopping him.”

“No one could have expected you to shoot your own brother to stop him.”

“I could have shot out the tire on the plane; I could have driven through the gates; there’s a lot of stuff I could have done – I just didn’t.”

“No, you didn’t. And I don’t blame you one bit. He’s your family, Danny.”

“Yeah? Well, if he was here right now, he’d have my fist in his face,” Danny sighed.

“You give new meaning to tough love.”

“There are times that it’s needed,” Danny pulled back enough to focus on Steve, plainly remembering their first day as partners as well as his brother.

“Yeah well, I’m not into S&M,” Steve informed him blandly.

“You thought you weren’t into guys three days ago.”

“And that’s enough life-altering changes for one year.”

Danny’s lips curved slightly. “Wimp.”

“In this particular instance, I’m fine with that.”

Danny reluctantly released his hold on Steve’s waist before he spoke. “You know, there is room on this couch for more than one.”

“I know, but I like it right where I am.”

Danny was silent for a moment before he finally gave a small smile, his chest rubbing against Steve’s as he drew in a deep breath. “Just don’t complain to me when your back and legs start hurting.”

“Oh fine, be logical,” Steve pretended to grumble. He stole a kiss before straightening up and then dropping onto the sofa next to Danny. “Happy now?”

“More than I was before,” Danny admitted, leaning against Steve’s side, his hand dropping to Steve’s leg so he could knead the firm muscles of his thigh.

“If you keep that up, I’m going to be happier too.”

“I thought my hands had areas they were restricted from visiting,” Danny pointed out.

Steve eyed him. “When have you ever followed the rules?”

Danny paused and eyed Steve strangely. “You’re kidding, right?”

“No. You break every single rule I tell you.”

“That’s because your rules are unreasonable unlike the laws that you break!”

“Tell me one single law I actually broke,” Steve demanded.

“Hanging people off roofs? Throwing them in shark tanks? Blowing up doors with grenades?”

“The tank is a tourist attraction that people pay to experience, and the roof guy wasn’t hurt. No laws broken. The grenade, well, I had probable cause, and he was resisting.”

“Bullshit,” Danny muttered as his fingers flexed against Steve’s thigh again.

“The facts back me up.”

“What facts are those?”

“The ones that I just reminded you of, that you like to ignore in favor of drama.”

“Drama?” Danny demanded. “You did not just call me a drama queen!”

“I never said that,” Steve assured him, trying not to grin.

Danny glowered, apparently not believing a word Steve said, and the grin spread across Steve’s face.

“I didn’t,” he insisted laughingly, causing Danny to give an inarticulate growl and lunge in to kiss him in an attempt to shut him up, his hand sliding higher up Steve’s leg as he moved, ending up pressed against Steve’s groin.

Steve stiffened – in more ways than one – but he didn’t pull away or push Danny’s hand away, instead returning the kiss with one hand braced on Danny’s shoulder, his fingers curling into the soft fabric of the t-shirt he wore.

The quiet hum that greeted that move reverberated through his chest, and Danny flexed his fingers against the bulge of Steve’s cock as his tongue slid into Steve’s mouth.

Steve leaned in closer, deepening the kiss, and after a moment’s hesitation, he slid his free hand into Danny’s lap, tentatively touching him to Danny’s apparent and audible pleasure as he shifted to spread his legs more and allow Steve to explore him as much as he wanted to. Steve swallowed audibly, but his hand moved, his fingers stroking the growing bulge beneath Danny’s khakis, learning the shape of him and the pressure that Danny liked.

“Are you going to freak out if I go for more?” Danny mumbled against Steve’s jaw before dipping his head to nibble at the hollow beneath it.

Steve hesitated for only a moment before whispering, “No.”

Danny’s answering smile was warm and pleased. “Glad to hear it,” he rasped, brushing his lips over Steve’s to distract him as he worked on the button at the waist of his cargo pants.

Steve shivered at the touch, and after a moment his hand moved from Danny’s cock to his waistband, deftly unfastening the button and sliding the zipper down despite his obvious nerves. And then his hand was sliding beneath the soft cotton of Danny’s boxer briefs, and his fingers stroked Danny without anything between them, pulling a gasp from Steve’s throat.

Danny echoed the sound, and his fingers shook as he dragged at Steve’s pants, delving inside so that he could find and circle Steve’s cock as well, learning his length and shape even as his own hips arched into Steve’s grasp.

“Oh fuck,” Steve gasped, gripping Danny harder as the blond touched him, and he realized that the sensation of another man’s cock in his hand wasn’t freaking him but rather making him hotter. A ripple of sensation shivered down his spine, and he kissed Danny again, muffling his own moans.

“Eventually we will – I hope,” Danny said tightly, the muscles in his stomach clenching as Steve stroked him even as he forced his hand further into Steve’s pants to caress his balls.

“Eventually,” Steve replied breathlessly, his back arching as he pushed into Danny’s hand.

“This is good for now though.”

“Really good,” Steve panted, copying Danny’s movements, hoping to drive Danny as crazy as he was making him and apparently succeeding as Danny groaned and dragged him in to eat at his mouth, the movements of his hand synchronizing with Steve’s.

The sound that escaped Steve could only be described as a whimper, though he would never admit to that, and he squirmed on the couch, wishing they were someplace more comfortable but not wanting to stop even long enough to suggest it, let alone let go of Danny to move. Instead he thrust into Danny’s hand and moved his own more rapidly, tightening his grip slightly.

“C’mon, let me feel it,” Danny rasped, twisting his hand as he thrust into Steve’s grip, his precome slicking the slide of flesh on flesh.

Steve gasped, staring at Danny, and the next time Danny’s fist moved down his cock, he came, his own hand briefly tightening on Danny’s cock and slowing until the groaned protest had him moving again even as spasms of pleasure rippled through his body.

A clear look of pure pleasure that turned Danny’s eyes crystalline greeted Steve’s orgasm, and he dove in for another kiss, moaning his own pleasure into Steve’s mouth as he came as well, gouting spurts of hot liquid over himself and Steve’s hand.

Stroking him through the final spasms, Steve curled his other arm around Danny to hold him close as they both panted, and almost to his own surprise, Steve wasn’t freaked out by what they had done now that it was over.

“Wow.”

Danny broke into a slow grin, and he slowly brought Steve’s hand up to his mouth and licked his fingers clean. “So I don’t have to ask if it was good for you?”

Another shudder ran down Steve’s spine at the sight and sensation of Danny licking his own come from Steve’s hand. “Let’s just say you won’t have much trouble convincing me to try that again and more.”

“Maybe in a bed next time?”

“That would definitely be more comfortable.”

Danny gave a crooked grin even as he finally released Steve’s hand to start licking his own clean, groaning at the taste of Steve’s pleasure that coated his fingers.

Watching him, Steve could feel a distant twinge as his body attempted to react despite his utter satiation. “Jesus, are you trying to kill me?”

Danny’s lips curved in amusement as he finished with his hand. “You saying you can’t take it?”

Steve opened his mouth to respond, actually paused to think about it, and then grinned. “Under normal circumstances, I can take anything you can dish out, Danny, but right now, the only thing I want to take is a nap with you.”

“Yeah, that works, we could even lose some of the clothes so that we’re comfortable,” Danny smiled as he slowly pulled back and stood, hitching his pants up around his hips so that he didn’t trip on them.

“Have I mentioned that you have some very good ideas?” Steve got to his feet as well, letting his khakis fall down around his ankles before bending down to unlace his boots and step out of them, his socks, pants and boxer-briefs all at one time, Danny watching appreciatively the whole while.

“Nice,” he murmured, licking his lower lip.

Steve grinned at him. After years of military showers, one thing he wasn’t was body shy, and while he was still feeling his way in this thing with Danny, he wasn’t going to get weird about being naked in front of him after what they’d done together.

“C’mon,” Danny chuckled, bending to pick up Steve’s clothes and tuck them under his arm. “Time to take that nap and then we’ll see what trouble we can get up to.”

“We don’t ever need to look for trouble,” Steve said wryly as he followed Danny down the short hall to the bedroom. “It naturally seems to find us.”

“True,” Danny sighed, letting his pants drop as he entered the bedroom and stepping out of them even as he unbuttoned his shirt and shucked out of it as well.

Steve watched him, obviously liking what he say, and after a moment he pulled off his own shirt and then stretched out on the bed, naked.

Danny paused in the midst of stepping out of his boxers, and he smiled. “Very, very nice,” he murmured.

“Likewise.” Steve was a little less relaxed, but he still lay sprawled, and his eyes ran over Danny with appreciation, Danny noting the slight tension as he crawled in to join Steve, slanting a kiss over his mouth as he settled in next to him. Steve curled an arm around Danny, drawing him closer, and although the shape of him was unfamiliar, the sensation of someone he cared about pressed close was welcome.

Steve’s lips curved in a small smile, and then he kissed Danny in turn, deepening it when Danny’s lips parted in welcome.

“Now that’s what I needed,” Danny murmured against his lips. “Did I mention that I was glad you came over?”

“Probably, but it’s still good to hear.”

“You glad you did?”

“Yeah, I am. Still a little surprised by this, and some part of me’s still sort of freaked out, but I am glad. I want this, Danny, want you.”

“Good.” Danny smiled at that and settled onto his back, pulling Steve over onto his side next to him. “Just don’t go changing your mind while we’re asleep, okay?”

Steve rolled his eyes. “Go to sleep, Danny.”

“Yes, dear.”


End file.
